Whitman, Plymouth County, Massachusetts Genealogy

This is a historical and genealogical guide to the town of South Abington now Whitman. You will find help with town histories, vital records, city directories, cemetery records and cemeteries, churches, town records, newspapers, maps, and libraries.

Town Clerk

Brief History

This area was first called "Little Comfort" as a section of Bridgewater until is was set off as the town of Abington in 1712. The area was set off as the Second or South Parish of Abington in 1808. It is a Plymouth County town, and where it remains today.

Historical Data

The basic data is from the "Historical Data" publication series[1] with additions from various sources.

Associated names

Abington at one time was called Little Comfort and South Abington.

Village or section names include Auburnville, East Whitman, Northville, South Abington, West Crook, and Whitman Line Park.

Border changes

Dates

Events

4 Mar. 1875

The Second or South Parish of Abington and part of East Bridgewater set off to form the new town of South Abington.

Town Histories

Charles F. Meserve, "History of South Abington" in D. Hamilton Hurd, ed., History of Plymouth County, Massachusetts ... (Philadelphia, 1884), p. 503-522.Digital version at Internet Archive.

Abington and the Revolution and earlier wars : the story of old Abington, Massachusetts (now Abington, Rockland, and two-thirds of Whitman) and the part the town played in securing American freedom in the 17th and 18th centuries ([Abington, Mass.?], 1975), xi, 123 pp.WorldCat (Other Libraries); FHL book 974.482 H2a.

City Directories

The Library of Congress (Washington, D.C.) has one of the largest collections of city directories in the country. They are likely to own most of the years listed above. Their collection is in microfiche, microfilm, and books, but there is no online inventory of their holdings except for microfilm. See their guide online.

Cemeteries

The following is a list of cemeteries in present-day Whitman. For locations of cemeteries, see PlymouthColony. For more details regarding these cemeteries, see the state guide under cemeteries for books on the subject.

Colebrook Cemetery, 1828. (A, B)

Hersey Children's Burying Ground, n.d.

High Street or Noyes Family Burying Ground, 1805. (A, B)

Jenkins Family Burying Ground, n.d.

Mount Zion or Old Cemetery, 1740. (A, B)

St. James Cemetery, n.d.

Smallpox House Cemetery site, 1778. (A, B)

Amos Whitmarsh Cemetery, n.d. (B)

Abstracts of the cemeteries above are marked and keyed to: (A). Vital Records of Abington, Massachusetts, to the year 1850 (Boston, 1912). [See links on Abington for various versions of this source.] (B). New England Historic Genealogical Society, Manuscripts Dept., Boston, Mass.

Many of Whitman's cemeteries have been transcribed and added to the websiteFindaGrave.com